A 56-year-old retired army man was hammered to death at his house in Halasuru over a suspected property dispute on Wednesday.
The deceased, Jude Suresh, was a divorcee and lived alone in Goutham Colony after the death of his mother three years ago.
According to the police, the house was in the name of Suresh’s mother and his siblings, who lived separately, used to come home frequently and fight over the property.
The murder came to light when a neighbour called him up and his phone was switched off. He knocked on the door, but when it was not opened, he peeped through the window and saw the man lying in a pool of blood and alerted the victim’s relatives.
The body was covered with a thick layer of chilli powder, probably to hoodwink the dog squad and destroy evidence from the scene of crime, the police said.
Investigations revealed that the assailant entered the house through the backdoor and attacked him, killing him on the spot. The house was found ransacked. Police suspect that the assailant tried to search for some important document or it could also be to divert the attention of the police to make it look like murder for gain.
The police have taken up a case of murder and are gathering CCTV footage.
